Even before Kevin Harvick climbed behind the wheel of his No. 4 Mobil 1 Ford Mustang for the Coke Zero Sugar 400 at Daytona International Speedway on August 29 and went on to finish in 20th place, he was already celebrating a major accomplishment of this season after he was awarded the 2020 NASCAR Cup Series regular-season championship trophy.
This season marks Harvick’s 20th consecutive season of competing in NASCAR’s premier series and his seventh with Stewart-Haas Racing. Through the 26-race regular-season stretch, led by crew chief Rodney Childers, Harvick recorded seven victories, seven stage victories, 17 top-five results, 21 top-10 results and an average result of 6.6 while he has also led over 1,100 laps. Among his accomplishments this season include winning at Darlington Raceway in May following NASCAR’s return from a hiatus due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and backing it up with victories at Atlanta Motor Speedway, the first of a Pocono Raceway doubleheader weekend, the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, sweeping Michigan International Speedway in a doubleheader weekend and winning the second Dover International Speedway doubleheader while recording the 700th Cup win for the Ford nameplate. Once he first took the lead in the regular-season standings following Phoenix Raceway in March, he never looked back as he stormed ahead from the competition on a weekly basis.
Having a competitive car towards the front throughout the regular season makes Harvick and his No. 4 Ford Mustang team a championship favorite entering the 2020 Cup Playoffs as he pursues his second Cup championship, the third title for Stewart-Haas Racing and the first title for Ford since 2018.
In addition to becoming the third overall regular-season champion in the NASCAR Cup Series since its inception in 2017, Harvick was also awarded 15 bonus points and will start off the 2020 Cup Playoffs with the top seed with 2,057 points and ahead of Denny Hamlin (2047), Brad Keselowski (2029), Joey Logano (2022) and Chase Elliott (2020). He will also compete against his three Stewart-Haas Racing teammates (Aric Almirola, Clint Bowyer and Cole Custer) along with 12 other competitors throughout the 2020 postseason.
Kevin Harvick’s pursuit for a second Cup title will commence on Sunday, September 6, at Darlington Raceway for the Cook Out Southern 500, which will occur at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN.
